“Watch out for this rock. It is loose.”
“The trail gets narrow here.”
“There is a thorn bush to your right side.”
“The trail goes to the right of the big tree in front of you.”
When you hike with a group, there is a lot of communication as you make your way down the trail. Even more conversation as you navigate all the up and downs and twists and turns of that trail. You look out for one another, but also pay attention to the path ahead of you. What is coming up?
Pastors from Eastern Oklahoma Presbytery spent five days at White Rock Mountain in Arkansas last week. The Pastor’s Wilderness Retreat is an annual gathering to reconnect, recenter, and renew. The shared meals, devotions, hiking, and free time facilitate conversations and sharing about the highs and lows of ministry. They create camaraderie and help us to envision new forms of shared ministry. Spiritual practices that might be neglected in the busy life of a minister can be picked back up in the freedom of the retreat setting.
The hiking is always at the center of these retreats. Whether it was hiking the rim trail around the mountain or exploring portions of the Ozark Highlands Trail, the participants explored a small corner of God’s creation as leaves were beginning to change from green to orange to red to russet around us. It is in the hiking experience that we had to rely on one another. We helped to carry each other’s burdens and to offer encouragement.
For a week, these retreats are a microcosm of the church. The journey may look slightly different and there may be different companions, but we are still trying to navigate through God’s world at this moment. Where are the pitfalls? Where do we need a hand up? Where might we necessitate some positive feedback?
God has made all of us for a journey of faith. Where are you going and who is hiking with you?
Blessings,
Rev. Tim Blodgett
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